


Heartmelting Dragon

by Haski_kitsune



Category: BURN THE WITCH (Manga)
Genre: Action/Adventure, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Attempt at Humor, Awesome Niihashi Noel, Awkward Romance, Awkwardness, BAMF Bruno Bangnyfe, Bleach References, Character Study, Drama, Enemies to Friends to Lovers, Eventual Smut, Friendship, M/M, Romantic Comedy, Slow Burn, Teenage Dorks
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-12-07
Updated: 2021-01-05
Packaged: 2021-03-10 01:35:04
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 9,820
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27826123
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Haski_kitsune/pseuds/Haski_kitsune
Summary: “And from now on, since you've caused a lot of damage and cost me a lot of money, you work together. Bruno will train you, mr. Parks, and don't try to object.”(Updates every two weeks)
Relationships: Balgo Ywain Parks & Niihashi Noel, Balgo Ywain Parks & Osushi (Burn the Witch), Bruno Bangnyfe & Rickenbacker (Burn the Witch), Bruno Bangnyfe/Balgo Ywain Parks
Comments: 12
Kudos: 19





	1. Nowhere seen before 🖇

**Author's Note:**

> Before you read this fic, you need to know some things about it.  
> I am not a native english speaker, so I might not know some things abt language. Point it in the comment section, please.  
> Also, it’s not a canon and I own nothing except for my additions to the world. If I have more info abt characters and world, I’ll edit chapters I made mistakes in, but otherwise, this fic has its own rules.

**Prologue**

  
Outside, the sun shone and reflected off the Windows of the Realist’s building, which was being rapidly restored by the Wing Bind Gallows squad. The Top Horns council on the dranclad was scheduled to begin in ten hours, and in the meantime, Bruno was questioned by Slashhaut.

“Balgo Parks punitive release application?” Wolfgang asked, raising an eyebrow. “Well, why?”

Bruno scowled. Bangnyfe knew what he meant, but could not answer, not without words ‘he is useful’.

“Never expected to see anything like this from you”, Slashaut sighed.

He discovered a study compiled by Bruno based on the observation of Parks. If only old man knew how many hours were spent on the report, he would immediately put him on the heir’s place.

Bruno wanted to impress him terribly, and wanted to pay him back for a normal childhood, too.

“You established that he came into contact with Macy Baljure, before the discovery of his dragonclad nature”, Wolfgang narrowed his eyes and put his hands under his chin.

There was a calculating gleam in his eyes, and Bruno shuddered. It was really scary when Wolfgang showed the guise of the head of Wing Bind.

“If that event was serves asthe trigger for Cinderella's appearance, it's enough reason to keep him alive”.

Wolfgang sighed again and glanced sideways at Bruno. It looked warmer than the entire previous speech and Bangnyfe shrugged and pulled hands into the pockets of his coat. Frozen.

“I only noticed it by accident”, Bruno answered the unspoken question, nudging his own heel with the tip of his toe. He rolled from heel to toe, squinting sideways, not knowing what to do with his hands.

Bruno tried to justify his director status, but due to the lack of experience, only seven years, it was not always possible, especially in front of Wolfgang.

“He's never been down this road before, I've _checked_ his routes and been up to date, believe me, ol’ Wolfy. On the same day at the same place as Baljur said, she found Cinderella. Simple logic”, he explained, finally putting his hands in his pockets and letting them stay there.

Instead of the office, he could still see the dragon, the faces of impudent witches, and the picture of dragonclad boy with the sword. Bruno blinked away the memory.

Wolfgang hummed an unfamiliar tune approvingly, but immediately returned to working order. Bruno stretched out again, cursing inwardly, he hated this change in Slashhaut.

"All we can say now, is that Balgo parks will serve as a trump card in destroying the Märchens”.

Bruno sighed, scratching his mohawk. He really expected this decision and, to be honest, he felt sorry for this kid. Not enough to really regret his imminent death, of course. A grin crept to his lips.

But Slashout was in no hurry to let him go, only narrowing her eyes. His pen tapped steadily on the table.

“Is there anything else you want to mention, Bruno?” he asked softly. Bengnif remembered again how Balgo's sword had flared up in his hands, a few seconds before Cinderella's death, but he only closed his eyes, resisting the urge to say so.

“No, ol’ Wolfie, I put it all in the report”, he said, tapping the band-aid with the tip of his finger. “There's nothing more to add than pipers' appalling behavior,” Bruno said, pulling it away.

“As wild as always,” Wolfgang nodded, smiling through his mustache. “You can go now, Bruno”.

Bangnyfe nodded and shut the door behind him.

Slushout leaned back in his chair and folded his hands on his chest. The boy seemed really happy with life, and he had a plan to upset this good mood.

***

  
The morning after the Cinderella incident, Ninny and Noel were called to a meeting at headquarters before they even went to bed. Spangcole solemnly smiled, waiting for a raise, but instead…

“What?! Why didn't they pay us anything extra?!” Ninny slammed on the table, shouting.

Noel and Billy put their hands over their ears and made absolutely impenetrable faces. Banks immediately after, with not responce to another cry from her side, narrowed his eyes and pointed at the computer screen.

“It's not nothing. Take a closer look”.

Ninny took a deep breath, exhaled, and screamed even louder, “Five points and five pounds is the equivalent of nothing!" she waved her hands. “I can't accept this after we killed the legendary dragon!”

Billy shrugged with a silly smile. “I'm surprised you didn't go into negative territory with all the collateral damage for the Other London”, he sang with a hint of malice in his voice, and then pulled out the task report. “And anyway, it says that Director Bangnyfe dealt the final blow”.

Ninny seems to have made a plea to the cosmos, stared at her hands, put aside all logic, and plunged back into madness. Noel giggled, covering her mouth with her hands. Ninny didn't notice it in the fire of rage that was spewing out of her mouth.

“ **What**?!” she dropped her elbows on Billy's Desk and screamed. “ **How** did they find out?"! He didn't kill it either!”

“By 'either' you mean it wasn't you!” Billy exclaimed happily as he caught Ninny biting her tongue. She snorted, pursing her lips, and Billy got up, looking serious. “But in any case, enough with the jokes. I still have something to tell the entire squad consisting of… you”.

“Besides Balgo?” raised an eyebrow Nihashi. “—it is related to the trial, isn't it?” Ninny paused and grimly looked away to the side. She didn't want to talk about the future. Billy exhaled.

“Yes, his absence is due to a meeting of the Top Horns, but first there is another news,” he waved his hand at the door, letting a confused Macy enter with a faint smile.

She clenched her fists around the hem of her loose skirt — today she was wearing casual clothes for once — removed makeup and gel from her hair, and stopped hiding the absolute straightness of her hair. It suited her.

Banks Jr. adjusted the visor of his beret a little and explained to the indecisive Pipers: “Macy was registered as having a mild form of possession due to being around Märchen for a long time, so she was assigned to our squad”.

“Nice… to meet you?" Buljure wrung her hands, flushing. Ninny paused, trying to calm herself, and gently took her hand.

“Hi, Macy,” Spangcole said with a small smile. Noel looked skeptical at tyr sharp change in her character (maybe Buljure’s feeling weren’t thal all one-sided, as Niihashi thought). “You'll be staying with me for now”.

Macy beamed.

“Of Course, Ninny!”

“How romantic,” Billy snorted. “But now let's talk about serious things, if you're done”.

“Shut up, chief,” Ninny said. “What about Balgo? I do not not care either, actually”.

Billy scratched his head and answered seriously:

“In the evening, Top Horns will gather and decide where and to whom he will go. The probability of his getting into our squad, and in the Pipers corpse in general too, is incredibly small, so, alas…”

Noel sniffed the air.

She and Balgo had been friends since childhood, and he always chased her around like a dog on a leash, which annoyed her, but there was no way Noel could leave him alone. He always asked for help even with the slightest bruise and cried from minor injuries — how could he be left unattended?

And now the probability of their breakup has become more, several times. Noel gripped the wand that hung from her leg — it was all right, she was still stronger than anyone else in the squad. Niihashi will be able to protect her close people.

  
…

  
“Noel?” Billy called after an off-duty meeting. Macy with Ninny have gone ahead, but Niihashi paused to collect pipes and gown in the box. “I wanted to talk about something”.

“Yes, chief, I'm all ears,” Noel smiled, setting down the last pipe, this time a silver one. Banks, however, was not smiling.

“The situation considers Balgo and Osushi,” Niihashi immediately tensed, barely keeping emotional outburst. “No one is going to kill them, but after yesterday they can't let them stay on the same team as us”.

Noel said nothing, but squinted his eyes down, avoiding contact.

“You knew that when I introduced Macy, didn't you?” Billy chuckled. “Two dragonclads are too many for one team, plus a Black dragon-disguiser. I wanted to ask you to brighten up Balgo's last days in the squad while I get him better terms.”

“Yes, chief, it will be done,” Noel cleared her throat, blinking the bitterness from her heart. “At its best,” she added with a tight smile.

…

“Will you fight for Balgo Parks in court, Mr. Banks?” Sullivan asked as she closed the office door. Billy closed his eyes and leaned back in his chair.

“No, miss Squire,” he said quietly. “I made that decision the moment I agreed to take Macy into the squad”.

The Director of Sabres corps frowned. Even though he was so eager to keep him on their team before? What could prevent the hero's son or scare him so much that he gave up a friend.

“Balgo is a good guy, calm, unproblematic, if you ignore his perverted nature, but I can't risk my girls,” Billy said, folding his hands under his chin with a sigh.

“Why not?” Sullivan's eyes narrowed. “If they can't handle the dragons, I can send experienced members of my corps”.

“On the contrary, they like to fight, but the black dragons have been acting strangely lately”.

“And what does that mean?” Squire leaned toward him, interested.

“They collapsed before our eyes, trying to kill Balgo to the last. Even when they had nothing left but their heads, they went all the way, and you know that's not _normal_ , Sally”.

Oh.

***

Balgo leaned against the wall, watching Osushi play in the clearing. He was forbidden to let him go, but how can you guard the dog from the game?

…how can you guard him from school? Balgo went on a long-term sabbatical, was snatched from his own apartment, moved in with Noell and Ninny, and, after all, he had a normal life.

He didn't ask for it, although Parkds liked to know something about the other world ( ~~although he already knew relatively much~~ ), but a normal, boring life was better than the constant danger of dying.

His thought was interrupted, “Yo, Parks”.

Balgo forced a smile, suppressing a shiver as he turned to Bruno Bang-something. He tried to kill him, and now he can talk so disrespectfully!

“What’s uuup?” Balgo drawled, making an uncomprehending face. Bruno snorted as he jumped off his dragon. Rickenbacker snorted, too.

“Ol’ Wolfie said to let you know that your trial is tonight. Spend your last hours with your pipers,” Bruno said. “They won't get custody of you back.”

Balgo couldn't crack a stupid joke this time.

— Where will they send me?” he asked quietly, picking up Osushi in his arms. At least this one didn't say anything about the ‘danger of the black dragon!’.

“Top Horns, for sure,” Bruno nodded to himself. “No one else is suitable in terms of security clearance and strength—“

Judging by their chief and Bruno himself, all the top management are absolutely fucked up. Inks director looked at him with narrowed eyes.

“Should I send you their profiles? Judging by your mood, you're going to need it,” Balgo just looked at him with such a _pretty_ look that he stopped talking and raised his hands in the air, “Okay, okay”.

His dragon, which had been frozen, came up to Nalgo — it took all his courage not to scream in horror — and nuzzled his palm.

What?

The dragon continued to sniff at balgo, while Bruno looked at him as if he were a traitor. Parks laughed derisively inwardly, but his smile didn't waver from the outside.

“Rickenbacker,” growled Bruno. “We still have a mission to complete, let's go”.

The dragon pointedly raised its tail and turned its back on its master.

“ _Come on_ ,” Bruno said more menacingly, and Balgo, unable to bear the long ‘I-will-kill-you-if-you-don't-help’ look, moved the dragon toward him.

Rickenbacker sighed sadly, but still returned to the owner.

“Well, See you again,” Bruno muttered, deeply offended, and flew off in the direction of the Wing Bynd building.

Balgo laughed. If he had a chance to choose, the psychopath who tried to kill him wouldn't be the worst option.

“Yes, Osushi-chaaaan?” he drawled, raising the dog to the level of his face. He just licked Balgo's nose. “But you can talk,” Parks said, offensed.

He was bored again.

  
…

“Balgo-san—“ Noel called. Parks looked up from his phone and smiled. She still looked dazzling.

“Welcome back, Noel!” He said. “Chief took my pipe and a robe, so I'm probably fired,” Balgo said, scratching his head awkwardly.

Suddenly, Noel wrapped her arms around him, holding him tight. She hid her face in her shoulder and, Balgo realized, bit her lip. Parks couldn't help but be embarrassed, raising his hands and fearing to ruin the moment. How many times had he dreamed of such a hug, but after the news of the separation of custody somehow did not think about— ahem.

“Is something wrong?” he asked, drawing back.

“Yes,” Hoel hid her eyes, “You will leave our group”.

Ah, here's the thing. Balgo closed his eyes.

“It’s fine, I know about it, that Bruno guy told me about it,” he said. Noelle looked up at him with worried eyes, but pulled away. Parks decided to cheer her up.

“Don't worry, it's all right. We can go shopping and have a cocktail— from the same glass! Haha!” Balgo laughed softly, taking her hands in his. “We still have time to walk!”

Noel smiled softly and nodded, reassuring herself.

It was for this optimism that Noel loved him. Although ‘hot guy’ was clearly not about him.

“Right”, Niihashi nodded. “Let's go for a walk, since you have suggested it.”

Balgo nodded and grabbed her arm, gently pulling her toward the Thames embankment.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, if you are here, you like thos pairing, you like this universe and you like this characters. So, disclaimer.  
> First, I do not claim that my vision of the characters and the world is correct, but since there is no official information, it will be so for now. When more information appears, I'll correct the details.  
> Secondly, the plot also does not pretend to be real, as well as my theories don’t. Exclusively my thoughts.  
> Third, everything belongs to Kubo, I just decided to play with the characters ;)
> 
> And in General, this is my first romcom! How could I, the ultimate shipper, not write a romcom? Ahahhh


	2. Well bounded ⚖️

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ol’ Wolfy got himself a pain in the ass.  
> Or.  
> Somehow, Bruno and Balgo end up in one team.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Usual warning for native english speakers: I AM NOT A NATIVE SPEAKER. I might not know how some grammar works, or how comas work, that’s fine if you don’t want to read it, but sorry for such mistakes.

**(First chapter)**

  
Balgo laughed looking at the Osushi that happily bounced around a pet store. Parks had just bought him a new collar, similar to the one he was wearing now, only dark blue. Noel stood a little way off, smiling as she took pictures of Osushi on her phone.

She had insisted that he shoul have wore gloves, a mask, and a cap to the store, so Parks couldn't fully enjoy the freedom, but it was nice to go shopping for the first time in a month.

“Where are we going now?” Noel asked, hiding her hands behind her back.

Balgo, who took the opportunity to go with her to any location of his dreams, has already dragged her through the amusement park, cat cafe, clothing store and, lo and behold, a pet store. The last destination was the embankment.

And after the end of their walk, he would have to leave the division. Balgo shrugged off the thoughts, almost erasing the frown from his face, though it seemed that Niihashi still noticed.

“Are you afraid?” She asked with a sigh. Parks shrugged and took his hand by the wrist, hunching a little. “I hate the idea, too”.

Balgo wasn't in the mood for silly and perverted jokes, so he gave up and put the smile away. He rubbed his wrist, turning away and squinting.

“I'm sorry, Noel”, he said softly. “I got the division in trouble.”

“No,” Niihashi cut, leaning on the fence at the Thames. She stroked Osushi. “You helped Ninny and me raise a score we haven't seen in a long time, we can handle black dragons, and you're fine if you know where to look”.

She shook her head and wrapped himself in her cape, turning cold.

“The only reason the squad got into trouble was because of their superiors. You just did the best you could”, she said, standing up and giving him a hug.

Balgo dropped his hands and buried his nose in her shoulder. He wanted to cry, but even he didn't want to show it in front of Noel. She mumbled something reassuringly into his shoulder and smiled at him.

“Hugs always work, don't they?” she asked, patting Parks on his back. “We have to go, the meeting starts in half an hour.”

Balgo held his breath for a second, then put on his cheerful smile again.

“‘Course, Noel!” he shouted, sitting behind her on Brumbaggy.

How wonderful she is, he thought, squinting against the strong wind on the ascent.

***

  
Bruno tsked and kicked the rock. Ol’ Wolfie decided to send him to Parks again, just to meet him. Bad luck followed him every step of the way.

Although the previous meeting had not been so bad, Parks's behavior was still annoying, as was his pipers’.

A dot appeared in the distance, rapidly approaching. Great, here they are! Bruno grinned as he saw Balgo clinging to Niihashi from behind. Who ever flies on the brooms in the twenty-first century? He even pitied Parks, no one could fly like this without an extreme vestibular mechanism.

Niihashi landed as gently as possible on _practically broomstick_ , and Parks immediately jumped off the dragon, trying to catch his balance.

Bruno grabbed him by the hood and set him straight. The old man won't forgive him for his motion sickness injuries before the trial.

“Hello, Bangnyfe-san,” Niihashi nodded. Japanese? It's amazing that she works for Wing Bind, they usually keep everyone in the country. “Balgo-san and I have arrived as we were told”.

Bruno snorted.

“Considering the state you brought Parks in, I can't say the rush was worth it,” he said, letting go of Balgo's hood. The dragonclad nodded gratefully.

“Will we be able to attend the meeting?” Noel ignored him. The Ink corps Director narrowed his eyes.

“Don't ignore the comments of your superiors,” he said quietly, “although bein’ a Piper is an excuse, you're always newbee”.

Niihashi clenched her fists, turning away. Of course, most graduates went to the Pipers, but this should not affect the opinion of the corps as a whole.

“But to answer your question, yes, you’ll sit behind Takkinen and’ll keep _quiet_ , okay? Ans you,” he nodded to Balgo, who continued to smile stupidly, “are sitting behind Saka Rynn's chair. They won't even show up today,” Bruno snorted.

He opened the roof door to the building with a card and waved for them to follow. Noel reluctantly followed him, and Balgo, slightly biting his lip, followed after her.

It was ashameing for his corps, even if (possibly) former. Parks had become attached to Pipers, even to the guys at the front desks, even to the annoying man in the cafeteria. They weren't useless.

Balgo accelerated, drew level with Bruno and asked, not lowering his happy tone, “And why so-o-o ha-a-ard on Pi-i-ipers? Noelle isn't weak at all!” he's had years of training to play the naive jerk, nobody could misdisguise him.

Bruno looked at him sideways, as if that was a stupid question, but then, with a sigh, condescended to answer it, “An absolute majority of the members of Pipers are teens, because this coeps is the only place with a great reputation for them to go from the magic school, which fools them. They die on the first serious mission because they don't know anything about the world except how to fight,” he said, rolling his eyes.

“But isn't fighting the most important thing?” Balgo frowned.

Bruno explained, throwing his head back: “No, because they don't need their fighting skills during normal harvesting from Grapevine or slicing meat from Meatballs, but because of their carelessness or misinterpretation of signs from the dragon, they attack them. They get their asses dead for that”, Bangnyfe streched as though he had not just said that about the mass death of adolescents.

Balgo pulled Osushi closer to him, glancing back at Noel. She frowned at her feet and didn't listen to their conversation. Then…

“But dragons are calm, aren't they?” he asked. “It is difficult to misinterpret a growl or a step to the side”.

“Believe me, even _my_ new recruits manage to get scared by a sudden turn of the head,” Bruno chuckled cheerfully, clearly recalling an incident from his career.

“I don't understand,” Balgo said.

From the first day of his stay in Reverse London, all the dragons, although chasing him, were quite calm, and if not, he could easily distinguish aggression from curiosity and playfulness. Osushi and Brumbaggy loved Balgo.

“…I certainly hope you don't end up in my squad—“ Bruno drawled, narrowing his eyes. “—But if that happens, I'll train you myself.”

Not that that's such a compliment, Parks muttered to himself, turning away and slowing to the point where he is slightly behing Bangnyfe. He still didn't want to think about the transition.

Osushi licked his owner’s neck and snuggled deeper into his chest, wrapping his paws around him. Balgo put his face under the licks and laughed softly.

“Yeah, yeah, fine,” he whispered, stroking his belly.

His back was itching.

…  
  


“Sit down here,” Wolfgang nodded to them with folded hands at his chin, showing the view to the chairs behind Tronbone. “You, Mr. parks, are going to the spot between Bruno and Sullivan,” he added.

Balgo, with a fixed smile on his lips, sat opposite Slashout.

Squire looked at him from under her cap, and Bangnyfe stopped noticing Parks as soon as he sat down. The others just watched. (At him, silently observing him).

“Can I start?” Tronbone smiled good-naturedly, putting his hands on the table. “We ourselves know why we're here. Balgo Parks, Pipers, do _you_ understand that?”

They nodded, and Balgo buried his eyes in his palm and closed them. Don't think about the transition, don't think about it, he thought, swallowing.

“Well,” smiled Takkinen calmly. “Then I suggest we start looking at the 'where to' question. I personally think, Mr. Parks, that the best corps for you is the Gallows”.

Bruno snorted as he saw the old man's brow twitch. His face said, “I don’t want to deal with him”.

“I don't think so,” Sullivan said, putting her hands on her lap and pursing her lips a little. “Mr. Parks should go to the Sacreds, where we can monitor his condition and he can get immediate medical attention.”

“Send the problem-seeker to the injured people?” Bruno asked, raising his eyebrow. As much as Bruno didn’t like him and disagreed with his own characterisation, that sounded reasonable. Squire shrugged.

“Perhaps,” Millieve said, looking up thoughtfully, “Director Rynn can help. They have equipment for destroying dragons and safe research—“

“Denied!” the other Directors snapped in unison. Balgo raised his eyebrow at them, waiting for an explanation.

“He's a bit eccentric,” hopelessly replied Tronbone, sighing very heavily. From the tone of his voice, it was clear that Director Rynn was a truly… _interesting_ wizard.

Bruno laughed, as did Harry Shayk.

“I'd say f—freaking psycho,” Bangnyfe admitted, who was clearly about to say something harsher, but was stopped by Wolfgang's gaze across the table.

“So to Rynn?” Millieve smiled angelically, clearly not missing the entire conversation before, and clasped her hands together.

Bruno laughed, Shayk followed, Squire sighed heavily and turned away, Tronbone gave up, and Roy just closed his eyes.

Wolfgang raised his eyes to the sky in despair, exhaled, and said, “No, thank you, we won't send Balgo Parks to Rynn, Millieve,” all the Directors immediately fell silent (except _Bangnyfe_ of all people, of course). “Bruno, please calm down”.

Ninny giggled. The Director didn't calm down yet.

“Okay,” Slashhout frowned. “Okay, I get it. Discussion is not an option. _I_ 'll decide where you go to work, Mr. Parks.”

Balgo swallowed; the Gallows Director's look did not promised anything good.

“Go and rest for a while — for a _while_ , — and come to my office in half an hour, Mr. Parks. I'll call the Director you’re going to stay with. _Off_ _the office_ ,” he snapped.

Twenty seconds later, the room was empty.

Wolfgang took off his glasses and rubbed the bridge of his nose. Why was he doing all this again?

…

  
Ninny laughed at the same moment, when the Directors disappeared from their sight, almost falling to the floor. Macy just smiled, and chief Banks covered his eyes with his cap, hiding his, narrowed in laugher, eyes. Even Noel, _the_ wonderful Noel, laughed.

Apparently, the only person in this situation who hadn’t been having fun was Balgo who caught a real threat in the eyes of Slashhout. He suppressed the urge to run out of the building, forcing a smile.

“Directors are probably people, too,” Parks joked.

He was still pounding, but he was trying to keep himself from shaking, just as he had after the dragons’ attacks. Balgo swallowed. Calm down—

Shivering — he must have succumbed to Balgo's mood — Osushi snuggled closer to his neck. The panic inside was growing, although there seemed to be no reason for it.

Parks couldn't breathe.

“Oi,” suddenly appeared Bangnyfe wondered and patted on his shoulder. Balgo looked at him, eyes wide. “You look pale”.

“What are you doing here?” Ninny snarled. Bruno snorted.

“I was just passing by,” Bangnyfe said, “While you're laughing and this one's almost fainting, what kind of team are you?” he narrowed his eyes.

Noel blinked, clenching her fists.

“Does Balgo-san?..” she asked.

“Yeah, definetely,” Bruno said with a grin. “Come on, Parks," he said, clapping Balgo on his shoulder. “I need you for something, so don't imitate me”.

Balgo, who still couldn't breathe, couldn't nod or shake his head, just let himself be dragged away, almost by the scruff of the neck. It's a bit of a shame, but Parks isn't up to fighting now.

Bangnyfe dragged Balgo to a door in the Cabinet and muttered under his breath, “Oh, my God, why am I constantly confronted with him—“ and entered the room. It was a hospital wing or something.

“Director Squntnir,” he said, surprisingly calm (because _every_ time Balgo saw him, Bruno _screamed_ ). “Parks is having a panic attack. Please sort it out”.

”Director Bangnyfe?” Millieve angelicaly, like on the meeting, said.

Balgo could have sworn it was incredibly frightening, as if it was a mercenary standing in front of him.

“Let me see Mr. Parks, please,” she said, and Bruno almost rolled his eyes as he let go of Balgo’s hood and practically threw him at the director of the Liturgy corps.

She just let out a heartbreaking sigh.

“Well, let's see what you've got, Mr. Parks,” she smiled, more down to earth than before. “And don't be embarrassed, I'm a doctor”.

Balgo fell into her chest. In another situation, this would have made him happy, but in the state of the vegetable that he was, there was only shame.

Squntnire put him on the couch and ran her hand over his head with her eyes closed. Maybe she scanned him?

“Oh, you really did lose your temper,” she sighed after a moment. “Don't worry, I have tea with lemons from Lemoncito for such cases. If you drink it, it will go away”.

Balgo only nodded, accepting the cup from her. From the first sip, the lump in his throat eased.

“That helped, thank you,” he said into the cup.

“I’m not the director of the Sacreds for nothing,” Milieve nodded, already putting a jar of tea leaves back in the closet. “There are ten minutes left until the results are announced.”

“I'll stay here if you let me,” Parks said even more quietly, hunching his shoulders. Noel… but he himself is somehow more important to Balgo.

“I don't mind”.

Balgo buried his face in the phone, pulling Osushi closer to him. Disguiser wagged his tail and licked the owner in hos neck, and Parks chuckled. He wanted to watch the news, but how could he refuse _Osushi_?

“Yes, you're the cutest black dragon on the planet,” Balgo squeaked, burrowing his nose into the Pomeranian's fur.

He still had ten minutes of blissful ignorance, which could be spent doing something normal, something an ordinary person would do.

Balgo closed his eyes for a moment.

 _Ordinary_ person.

…

  
“Apparently, your boss will not be me,” Milieve said, who escorted him to the door; Balgo’s feet still a little not holding the weight of his body. “Although, I admit, it would have been an interesting experience”.

“You seem kind to me,” Parks said.

Squntnire smiled that same ‘I'm-harmless-but-you-see-that-there’ smile.

She closed her eyes in mock complacency and closed the door.

Balgo remained standing in the middle of the corridor, blinking.

“Why are all the Directors so strange? Even ‘Oh, how scary I am!’ Bruno,” he whispered, parodying the annoying Director.

“Because the ol’ Wolfie is lucky to collect fucked-up”, he heard his voice. Parks jumped and turned around, exuding a black aura.

“Did you hear that?” he asked, pushing it away from him; this was not the time to turn on his temper.

“Of _course_ I did,” Bruno said, grinning. Balgo was inwardly burned with shame.

Bangnyfe suddenly darkened.

“And just so you know, we're going to have to get along, because _I_ was _called_ here.”

“NOOOOO,” parks groaned, clutching his head. “WHY YOUUUUU?”

“I have no idea, you know,” Bruno snarled. “Maybe the old man can explain it to us.”

…

  
Alas, no, and the only thing he said to their question was,

“And from now on, since you've caused a lot of damage and cost me a lot of money, you work together. Bruno will train you, mr. Parks, and don't try to object.”

Balgo covered his face with his hands and screamed (internally, of course), and Bruno just hit his head against the wall.

“For what?” Bangnyfe asked quietly.

“For yours sake”, Slashhout unemotionally parried.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hahahaahh. (Not funny)  
> As you can tell from this chapter, this is the fanfic where Wolfgang ships Bralgo. More precisely, he tries to make Balgo loyal to the SS, but accidentally brings them together. Yes, I am cruel >:»  
> From this chapter, there will be a lot of romcom and little development of the plot about Balgo and Märchen. Due to the fact that there is LITTLE information about the universe, I think I can be forgiven.  
> The story itself will go somewhere in four months (ahem), and will focus on the main characters. Here. Märchen unlikely to appear, because WELL, DAMN, NOT ENOUGH INFO. I'll try to make them myself, but I can't promise anything, Yes.


	3. Not so cooperative 🪄

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Bruno and Balgo can  
> NOT  
> cooperate

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's pretty short, but I wanted to make a Christmas present for my favorite readers :)  
> From this chapter on, there will be about three consecutive exclusively Bruno/Balgo interactions, and MY GOD, I'VE BEEN WAITING FOR this. You'll see how sappy I can be in them, you'll see the emount of fluff I can put into one scene.  
> There are also small Christmas traditional art on my Twitter account for you as compensation for the size of the chapter, so, ahem. In general… yes, here is my Twitter, subscribe, I want to be a populare beach ahah :D  
> [Haski_kitsune](https://mobile.twitter.com/KitsuneHaski)

**(Second chapter)**  
  


Bruno’s eyes narrowed as he snapped at Parks. He was starting to look like the same jerk he'd been before the news-that-shouldn't-be-remembered announcement. Bangnyfe then thought that Balgo was disappointed not only in their fate but also in life in general.

“Why should I work with _Him_ of all people?!” that was his first reaction, and his face expressed so many emotions that it could only be described by the word ‘lost’.

“You know Bruno, Mr. Parks, and your history together doesn’t involve murder attempts and mutual hatred, so that seemed like the right option,” Slashhout said, hiding a grin behind his mustache and echoing Parks and Bruno's desperate cry.

“I/he tried to _kill_ him/me!” they shouted in unison, pointing at each other. Bruno slammed his palms down on the table, and Balgo just raised his hands to the sky.

Osushi simply clung to his owner and showed that he did not care about people's fights and wanted to eat.

“Ol’ Wolfie, an attempted murder involves _murder_ of all things, don't you think?” Bruno exclaimed desperately, baring. Parks grunted in approval.

Slashhout shrugged again and hid a smile. He was _bullying_ them! Bangnyfe thought, burying his forehead in the palm of his hand, still lying on the table of the Director of Gallows.

“I see the potential for you to work together,” he said, raising one eyebrow. It meant ‘are you going to question my decision, Bruno?’, but he kept _grinning_.

“Ol’ man”, Bangnyfe started too quietly, looking up at him. Balgo even wanted to cross himself, but then he remembered that he was an atheist. “You do realize that I can see your grin, and I've lived with you since I was ten, and I know your every habit?..”

Wolfgang nodded, clearly satisfied with the question. Parks just went quiet – something told him that this particular battle of the titans was not worth getting involved in.

And correctly.

“So why the _hell_ do I feel like you're _fucking with me right now_?” Bangnyfe yelled so that the windows shook. Parks shuddered and again suppressed the instinctive urge to cross himself.

It wasn’t that Bruno was disgusted by the idea of living – because that was what this ‘supervision’ meant – exclusively with Parks, no, he was disgusted by the idea of living with _anyone_. Even ol’ Wolfie was banned from entering his apartment, a room, and Slashout _knew_ how an introvert was Bruno.

So why the hell?!

Slashhout eyed heavy-breathing and enrolling magical energy Bruno and squinted his eyes behind his glasses, switching to business mode.

“It's an order, Bruno, Mr. Parks, and it's not to be disputed," he said quietly, removing the smile from his face. Bangni with a quiet growl calmed her magic, a little guiltily staring at the table.

Balgo only exhaled as he felt the weight of the magical pressure lifted from his shoulders. How long had it been since he'd felt this… ( ~~Why hadn't Noel told him…~~ ) Not a howl of nostalgia.

In fact, while the pressure was on, his back hurt more and his head cracked. Osushi soothingly licked Balgo in the neck. Parks smiled and patted him back.

Meanwhile, Slashhaut continued, “Bruno, I understand you, I really do, but you're the strongest fighter in Wing Bind—“

Bangnyfe skeptically raised his eyebrow at this, pretending to be surprised. Ol’ Wolfie leaned back in his chair and confessed with a smile, “Okay, I'll admit that I or Milieve are stronger than you, but Mr. Parks can't be around us at least because of questions about the appropriateness of this decision, and Director Squire, who is on the same level as you, is still a female”.

He decided not to mention Billy Banks, because Wing Bind still respected the memory of the hero.

“…” Bruno said nothing, but the silence was resentful. “Come on, Parks,” Bangnyfe said in the end, turning and grinning to Balgo of having dragged behind itself. “I'll write back,” he promised Wolfgang grimly.

He slammed the door behind him.

Balgo immediately twisted out of the grip on his wrist, frowning and narrowing his eyes. Bruno was surprised, Parks was almost never serious. Balgo said nothing, but gave the same look that Bangnyfe gave his subordinates in moments of extreme being fucked up, and Bruno fell behind without question.

He wasn't in the mood for conversation himself.

Parks, on the other hand, was so annoyed that the mood seeped through his — perfect, exect! — hundred-percent-worked-out disguise. Amazing! How could you put him on a team with a man who tried to kill him because they knew each other? _Why_?!

In the name of— ahem, that was disgusting! His brows slid even lower.

Suddenly Bangnyfe pushed him in the shoulder and pointed ahead. Noel was standing there, flustered. A silly smile crept over his face.

“Noe-e-el!” he stretched his arms out to the sides and pursed his lips in a pose. She immediately relaxed, regaining her usual calm expression and fighting off Balgo's ‘attack’ unbearably.

“I was worried,” she said calmly, giving the fallen Parks a look of complete indifference.

What an interesting relationship they have, Bruno thought, feeling strangely annoyed. No, Bangnyfe, now is not the time, he covered his eyes and put his clasped hands to his face.

“Oh, Noel was worried about me!” Balgo clutched at his chest. “I am smitten to the heart!” he gasped and sagged in delight. Pinned-down Osushi made an indistinct squeak, kicking Balgo resentfully with his paw.

Niihashi calmly lifted Parks by the hood, set him on his feet, and turned to face Bruno, who was struggling with strange emotions. He looked at the scene through narrowed eyes and folded hands.

“Director Bangnyfe”, Noel said, even going on a respectful tone. Apparently, they did have some kind of— relationship. “I've known Balgo since he was an infant, literally, and I know how _over-the-top_ he can be, but try not to lose it”.

“ _Noe-e-e-e-e-el_ ,” Parks groaned, a little ashamed. That is, to behave like a pervert is normal, and when someone is told that he is a pervert, so you can be embarrassed? He had a wonderful outlook on life.

Bruno exhaled again, calming himself. Parks pissed him off, _pissed him off, he tried to kill Parks_.

“Of course, Pipers,” Bruno said, his eyes narrowing slightly.

As long as she didn't try to touch him, he could barely keep from yelling at them both. Because Parks threw himself at Niihashi's feet again, and she shoved him away, which was very infuriating, because any element of comedy disappeared from the gesture.

Oh, that's better.

“Thank you, Director Bangnyfe”, she said, and turned away from Bruno, pulling Balgo closer to her and whispering something in his ear.

Or, more precisely, from Parks’ point of view, “Call me or Ninny if anything happens, you know that my parents are always happy to see you”, and he was not happy. Because he didn't want to go back to the neighborhood where his and Noelle's parents lived, ever.

Noel nodded one last time and hurried out onto the balcony for takeoff, not looking at drooping Parks. The reminder of his birthplace always upset him.

“Move, move, move your legs, Parks,” Bruno said, nudging Balgo’s shoulder. “Rickenbacker does not like to sit in a sealed form, so hurry up. He can still eat you”.

Balgo’s skin crawled instinctively as he remembered the big blue dragon, which, however— purred. Oh, that was adorable! Parks closed his eyes, smiling. The fear disappeared immediately.

“Why are you smiling?” Bangnyfe narrowed his eyes.

Balgo bared his teeth and hunched a little.

“Rickenbacker will be glad to see me, spotty!” he said, casting a proud glance at Bruno.

“What did you call me?” Bangnyfe gasped.

“Spotty”, Balgo confirmed the inevitable. “Until you stop pissing me off, you'll be called 'Spotty' in all its variations.”

“If you weren't important, I'd strangle you on the spot,” Bruno said, clenching his fist in front of him, his eyes narrowing a little dramatically. “But, alas, ol’ Wolfie will not approve of my amateur performance”.

Balgo smiled broadly, returning to his usual demeanor.

And here they were.

Bruno, who was already on top of Rickenbacker, looked condescendingly at Balgo, who was absolutely spared, who – just think, the man who flew on a _broomstick_ of all things! – feared the height.

“For Märchen’s sake!” Bangnyfe groaned. “Is it that hard to just _stand on a dragon_?!” He snapped.

“Spotty, I c-can't,” Parks stammered, shaking like a leaf.

Not that he had any height-related trauma, but to fly standing! On a broomstick, though, he _felt_ relatively on the ground. And here— yes, he'd better fly himself! Balgo’s itchy back reacted with a fresh burst of scratching pain.

“Get in, bellus¹,” Bruno said, holding out his hand, grinning and a little… embarrassed. What kind of jerk-name was this? “You don't have to look around, just grab my jacket and put your head down. When I was learning to fly, that's exactly what I did”.

Balgo didn't look impressed, but still took his hand, climbing up Rickenbacker. The dragon snorted benignly, nudging Parks with his wing.

Balgo touched his shoulder, staring at the dragon’s proud face.

“I don't think you're charming anymore,” he muttered, already feeling his legs turn to jelly. The only Rickenbacker again brushed his shoulder. “Oh, come on!”

Bruno closed his eyes again and pressed his hand to his face.

Again.

He also remembered that stupid Latin word… because of the nickname from Parks… ‘Spotty’… oh, dragons, how he got into _trouble_.

“I admit that my squad _really_ isn't a bad option,” he said, reassuring himself. Seeing Balgo’s murderous gaze, Bruno waved it away, then put Parks’ hands on his jacket. “Don't be surprised, Inks are the only ones who work with dragons like this and are the least racist”.

Balgo, who was staring at his hands on Bruno’s waist and slowly blushing, clearly out of reality. Here he almost knocked the steam out of the ears. Got to the condition, he thought. ( ~~Bruno sememed to be so, too~~ ).

( ~~Fuck, ol’ Wolfie, why~~ ).

“Hey, bellus,” Bruno said, kicking him lightly under his knee, looking down at Parks’ flushed face.

Meanwhile, in Balgo's head, “His collarbones, collarbones, oh my yahweh, his body, aaaaaa—“. It was the only time he'd ever felt this kind of panic at the sight of Noel, and sometimes it triggered him.

Here to the state of a melted puddle. There were two ways to get out of this state; to quietly wait for Balgo to collect himself (Noel used this one) or to—

—To be honest, given that Balgo had previously only gone into a ‘soft mush’ state in front of Noel, he didn't know about the second option—

—To kick the adrenaline on the nerves!

“Let's go, ignavos²!” Bangnyfe laughed maniacally, pulling Balgo close to him, and Parks felt the air rise around him.

He yelled, because _what the hell_!

"Put me down, you idiot! _Spotty_ , why didn't you let me breathe out!—“

Ol’ Wolfie, who had heard all this, smiled with narrowed eyes. Everything was going according to plan.  
  


…

  
“Exhausted?” Bruno snorted with satisfaction, deciding to take a break after all, because Balgo was clearly beginning to feel shell-shocked. Parks almost squeezed his neck in response.

“I swear,” he hissed, already departed from the ‘lovestruck!’ state and the explosion of adrenaline. He swayed a little, of course. “If the rest of the flight goes the same way, I'll break down and fall, and you, Spotty, will be responsible for it”.

Bruno hid a grin.

"What a terrible threat, bellus," he said. Okay, I'll have Rickenbacker to fly slower. If that's what you want — " he made an eloquent expression.

“Yes please,” answered Balgo, again returning to his position behind Bruno. “No comment on my condition, _no_!” he muttered, hiding his face behind his hair.

Bruno opened his mouth and then closed it, clearly changing his mind about what he was planning to say. (It was a pick-up line.) (No). (No, no, no, he won't use his pick-up lines on _Parks_.)

“Okay,” he gasped, stomping on the back of Rickenbacker. “Hold on tight this time, but look around, London has a nice view from above”.

The dragon rose with a flapping sound, and Balgo squeezed his eyes shut, not wanting to feel the whistling in his ears, but it didn't come. On the contrary, Rickenbacker rose and picked up speed slowly.

Balgo breathed a sigh of relief as he opened his eyes.

London was really beautiful from above.

“That's better”, Balgo _purred_ – ??? – and Osushi snorted something into his neck in agreement.

Bruno closed his eyes, determined to give Rickenbacker to control the flight, and thought, for the first time today to allow himself this idea,

  
“Oh, _shit_ , he's cute.”

***

¹ — cutie (lat.) [author’s note: ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)]  
² — little coward (Lat.)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wolfgang: I'm a genius, I avoided the m/w problem and provided Bruno with problems, what a genius I am, ahahahaha  
> Bruno and Balgo: Heavy Sexual tenshion in the air  
> Wolfgang: …  
> Wolfgang: FUCK, BRUNO IS GAY


	4. Oh, God, they’re roommates 💡

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> OK, Bruno has to admit something.  
> They somehow cooperate and he might catch a crush on Parks. He has a wonder-fucking-ful life

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I tried to make up for the short Christmas chapter, by this one :) in general, this is where the romcom itself begins. I’m still really worried about age cap of 5 years. Leave some of your thoughts about this in the comments.  
> Love disaster gay/awkward bi pairings, they are adorable  
> There are no full-fledged illustrations for this part, but there are a couple of sketches and a small appeal from me to you. Come here (https://mobile.twitter.com/KitsuneHaski) and look for arts and some WIP chapters and headcannons from me :)  
> The first OC turned out to be a bit annoying; aka the fem version of Balgo from the manga phphph - but I hope you’ll love her

**(Third chapter)**

  
Balgo sank to the floor with a sigh of relief. He has accepted that flying on a dragon’s back was more comfortable than on a kind-of-broom, (Bangnyfe called Broombagy so, and Parks took it as fact), but his legs were still shaking.

Bruno followed him, and hid Rickenbacker in some kind of paint. Balgo had no idea how magic worked in this branch of the Soul Society, but he wanted to know, so he interrupted Bruno, who was about to start baiting him, “How do your paints work, spotty?” Balgo made a pitying face. He had a right to know, after all! And Bruno at least replied, unlike Ninny.

“Stop calling me by that nickname, bellus,” Bruno scowled and snapped listlessly as he headed toward the entrance to the house from the balcony. “Inks are a kind of magic conductor that allows you to control your internal energy more easily. The more expensive and better the paint, the better the conductivity”.

“When you stop calling me balus-or-whatever-you-call-me, spotty,” Balgo said with a smile, looking up. “Aren't there any benefits for Wing Bind employees?”

“Never, bel-lus,” Bruno said with a satisfied grin. “Only for the directors and the close ones like the deputies and the first sub-division; I get the inks directly from the Patchworks’ department.

“Ouf”, Parks resentfully pouted, heading look for card in Bangnyfe’s hand, where he opened the glass doors. “Do all the directors have cards?”

“Your Piper had a phone coin, and the blonde one had a phone. Does that answer your question, Parks?” Bruno raised his eyebrow as he entered the building and looked around. “We need to go through a couple more halls to get to the apartment. Aren't you tired?”

Balgo shook his head indignantly, snorting. _What_ did Bangnyfe think of him anyway?

This house was huge. Balgo knew that the Reverse London was larger than usual one, but he did not find out what it was. Now, it was clear that the Top of Horns and the other leadership had really huge houses, and they might not occupy the smallest area.

Rich people. ( ~~Although Balgo couldn't blame them, he was the same.~~ )

Bruno was taken to the side of the wooden door, and Oh, Parks nearly fell onto the floor.

“Oh, I didn't live up to this point for nothing~” Balgo sang as he practically flew into the three-floored apartment. “I can't believe you have such an amazing apartment, spotty!”

Bangnyfe gave a startled grunt as he saw Balgo jump off the ground-to-first-floor ledge, landing on a sofa with a soft blanket and pillows. It wasn't high up here not - for _wizards_ \- but Parks had only been in this world for a month.

Commendable.

“Ol’ Wolfie gave me half the money for my sixteenth birthday, bellus,” Bruno explained, leaning over the same balcony and trying to ignore the urge to throw the intruder out of his apartment. “I collected the rest myself, by honest labor”.

“Cool,” Parks said, his face already buried in the pillow. Osushi happily settled down on the sofa next to him. “I want to stay like this forever,” Balgo muttered. He blamed himself for jumping off without thinking. He might not have landed so well, ~~(he still hadn’t had his powers back~~ ).

Bangnyfe decided to use the stairs, unlike Parks, and rolled his eyes when he saw Balgo wrap himself in a blanket. Hadn’t he have nothing to do, or what? Even though he was seventeen, he could still play the fool. (Bruno was twenty-three, but he wasn't the best example of a teenager.)

Bangnyfe still hated the idea of someone going to his apartment, but sincerely admired muzzle of Parks soothed his nerves a little.

“Come on, bellus,” he said, pushing Balgo's shoulder with a grin. Parks reluctantly began to stir, giving Bruno an indignant look.

“Whyyyy? I've had a pretty busy day, and I want to sleep,” Parks commented.

“It's only half past ten, the child time," Bruno laughed, unexpectedly softly. “You also need to see your temporary room. It is absolutely not ready to receive guests, but it has a folding sofa, at least”.

Balgo looked up in horror.

“Even my tiny apartment had a bed,” he said. “How can you betray my trust like that, spotty?!”

Balgo made an aggrieved face. “Easy, bellus,” Bangnyfe said, pulling him off the sofa by his arm. “There's also my bed, of course, but then it's the two of us”.

Oh, no, Bruno, that was a little bit too literal. A gay hint that a straight man would take really intimidating. Especially someone like Parks.

But to Bruno's deep surprise, Balgo was only embarrassed, deciding to ignore the remark and return to his contemplation of the room and the suddenly being interested shelves of books that were admittedly huge.

The awkward silence continued as Bruno dropped into the chair next to the sofa and grabbed a book from the coffee table. He'd given up on the Parks check-in, he could sleep on the couch tonight.

Balgo, still a little red, looked up at Bruno uncertainly.

“Sorry to disturb your privacy, spotty,” he muttered.

Bruno snorted, put his hand on the top of Parks's head, and ruffled his hair. To a confused rumble, (Bruno still had _no idea_ what Parks was making such sounds with), Bangnyfe replied simply,

“Don't fucking worry, _bellus_ ”.

Parks hid his face and smiled. Really, Bruno was not the worst option for a warden.

…

Bruno stretched, turning off the alarm that was blaring Back In Black to the whole house. (Bruno’s chart was at least a Wake-up at half past thirty and going to bed at half past twelve).

Yesterday he had left Parks, already asleep, and his dog, the black dragon (who had allowed him to stay at all?..) on the couch, having decided to confide Balgo. He checked a couple of reports from Chris and Ben, his second sub-unit, and went to bed without dragging it out.

But he had forgotten that it was Thursday. _Only_ Thursday. It felt like Cinderella and the grudge against ol’ Wolfie — and _Parks —_ had been going on for at least three days, but no, it was a terribly busy day.

_One_ day.

Unemotionally, Bruno grabbed the edge of Balgo’s blanket and pulled it toward him, causing Parks to fall to the floor and apparently hit something with a hiss.

No, after purring, Bangnyfe forbade himself to think about the strange dragon sounds (after all, Balgo was the Dragonclad, who knew how the hell they were working).

“Wake up and sing, bellus,” Bruno leaned over the sprawled body, grinning. “It's time to work”.

“Fick dich, fleckchen¹,” Balgo muttered, closing his eyes. “Still so eaaaarly—“ he groaned, waking up slowlh.

Bruno raised his eyebrow. He didn't speak German himself, of course, but he’d heard enough of ol’ Wolfie’s conversations to know it was it.

…For now, he'll ignore this.

“Eggs and toasts for breakfast,” Bruno said, picking up Osushi and walking away from the table. He had a studio, and God, it was fucking awesome.

“And the bacon?” Balgo protested, rising on his elbows and leaning against the back of the sofa. “How can you eat eggs without bacon? This is such a crime!”

Bruno shrugged his shoulders. He never needed food, but he cooked at the level of ‘I can, but in a Spartan way’, so he could not object to the indignation.

Balgo stood up confidently and went to the stove, wrapping up the sleeves of his hoodie as he went. (Bruno stuck to the tracking choker for a second. Parks was surprisingly well built).

“I was the one who cooked when I was living with Selby,” Balgo said, opening one of the lockers, not caring at all about Bruno, who was just standing there with a heavy expression on his face.

Parks wasn't going to eat an incomplete breakfast, even if he wasn't the landlord this time, so he aimed for the frying pan.

“Wonderful,” Bruno breathed, spreading his hands. “I'm so confused I don't even have any expressions”.

“They weren't supposed to be there,” Parks said, already holding the oil in one hand and the frying pan in the other. He smiled, noting, “Osushi likes you, spotty, though I don't know why”.

Bruno turned away, covering his face, trying to hide his smile. For some reason, Parks's obsession didn't annoy him, but only made him laugh. (That's probably what he himself wanted.)

Bruno stroked Osushi, still covering his face with his hand.

“I'm not that bad,” Bruno said, completely unable to contain the grin under his palm.

“You are," Balgo said with a cheerful, irritating smile, turning on the burner and dumping a huge – not _terribly_ huge, but enough – pack of bacon into the pan.

Bruno closed his eyes and decided he'd held on long enough for his hopeless gay ass. He stopped stroking Osushi and blushed, with as much honesty as he could muster.

_Oh, crap, I'm doomed_ , Bruno thought with extraordinary calm. There were no butterflies in his stomach _yet_ , but if he stayed with Parks for another week, they were guaranteed to show up.

So, he is _sooooo_ doomed.

“So this is an exclusively British breakfast?” Bruno finally sat down at the high table, setting Osushi on the floor. The dog stared at him a little indignantly.

Balgo, who was concentrating on his cooking and didn't see all the doubts on Bruno’s face, nodded, pouring an egg on top of the bacon. “Toasts come with honey, no objection,” he said.

Bruno put his hand under his face and picked up a can of paint from the edge of the table — as the director of the corps called ‘ _Inks_ ’ of all things, he considered it his sacred duty to place them all over his apartment — drawing a magic circle on the table.

The honey from the far cabinet disappeared and reappeared in Bruno’s hand.

“Got it”, he said to Balgo, who had been watching the whole action and raised an eyebrow, waiting for an explanation. Bangnyfe sighed.

“Knowing my inability to cook and ol’ Wolfie’s inability to stop at my ‘feeding’,” Bruno said in air quotes. “Do you think I know where there's at least _one_ ingredient besides eggs?”

Balgo took the bread from the table, putting two slices in the toaster, and commented on this speech, “Don't think I'm going to let it go, I'm too fond of good food, spotty”.

“I can _see_ that, bellus,” Bruno snorted.

A spoon flew at him, which Parks took out almost out of nowhere.

Balgo himself was in a surprisingly good mood for someone who woke up at half past six, even though he had only been up at nine before, and looked like a zombie just out of the grave. He didn't even bother with maintaining the ‘mask’, and was thinking of throwing it away in front of Bangnyfe altogether.

It was pretty difficult to maintain a disguise in front of the person with whom he will spend an unspecified amount of time.

“So back to the subject of ‘loving good food’…” Bruno drawled.

The next thing that flew at him was the finished toast and a plate. Amazing accuracy, Bangnyfe thought, catching the fourth and the last piece of bread.

The scrambled eggs and bacon landed on the table in the usual way, and the incredibly proud ‘chef’ sat down opposite Bruno. In fact, it turned out quite well.

“Doesn't the dragon-dog have to eat?” Bruno asked, watching as Osushi looked with hungry eyes at Balgo, who had eaten not toast with honey, but honey with toast.

Balgo shook his head.

”He needs food for the dragons, although the usual canned food also works, only worse”, he said, starting to eat a full breakfast. “I thought you have something for Rickenbacker, spotty”.

“Of course I'll give it to you on the way out,” Bruno said.

Fortunately for Balgo, the atmosphere was almost homely, even better than when he had stayed with Noel. He hid his eyes, shaking his fork in his plate. He was a little uncomfortable with this fact, but the world did not collapse from this, so it was nearly fine.

“You'll come to work with me,” Bruno said at last, breaking the silence. Balgo raised an eyebrow. He already knew about it, why tell? “Unlike your Pipers, I am a Director, I have — _at least_ — more responsibility and work, which means that you will have to travel all over the UK with me”.

“Do you cover the whole of the UK?” Parks asked. Bruno nodded.

“And not only that. The West Branch deals with all of Europe, but only ol’ Wolfie normally moves between states. The other directors do, too, but I'm still considered too _little_ ”.

“You, spotty?” Balgo snorted.

“Don't be surprised, bellus," Bruno said, his eyes narrowing. “I'm the youngest director, only twenty-three years old”.

Balgo mumbled something that wasn't very clear, but all he could think of was ‘he'saboutmyage.’ It was only then that Parks realized.

“If you're twenty-three, spotty—“ he began, suspiciously. “—and your directorial experience is seven years, then, it turns out, you became a director at—“

“—At sixteen,” Bruno said, cutting off another piece of scrambled eggs.

Balgo hovered. Error, four humdred four, the server is not found. He himself was seventeen, and he has not achieved any career success at all! ~~But because fate has turned so…~~

“If you don't take me into the squad, it will be the end of our relationship, spotty,” Balgo groaned, dropping his chin on the table.

“There are no other options, bellus,” Bruno sighed heavily. “We'll just give you the trumpet back, because you're obviously talented.”

In fact, Bruno had some doubts on the subject of this ‘pipe’. It looked more like the base of a sword, which it became for a short time. Bruno definitely wanted to ask Banks where he got it from.

He picked up the already empty plate and put it into the dishwasher, grabbing the second one Parks had set out. He wasn't even late this time, but he ate normally, for once.

“Hurry up”, Balgo tugged at Bruno's sleeve. “Rickenbacker does not like to sit in the ink longer than necessary”.

“Well, for Rickenbecker's sake, we might as well hurry,” Balgo said gravely, and followed Bruno, who was already walking out of the apartment.

Balgo was humming to himself. The day started off very well.

***

The ride on the dragon's back was definitely better that day than last night, but Balgo was still getting seasick and his back was beginning to itch horribly. Bruno did not fly fast, sometimes turning around and always seeing Parks’ dull green face.

“Are you all right, bellus?” Bruno offered his hand. Balgo accepted it gratefully. “You seem to be well enough to walk.”

“Yeah,” Parks nodded, with a heavy sigh. “Is that your wing, spotty? Looks good”.

Bruno nodded, nodding at the rest of the staff on the dragons landing nearby. They welcomed Bangnyfe, nodded and hurried into the building.

“That's the day shift coming up. They start at eight —“ and before Balgo, with all his enthusiasm, could ask about the night shift — “The previous one starts at ten o'clock!”

“Thank you, spotty,” Balgo said slyly. Bruno had already realized that he was being cheated for an answer, but he couldn't be angry.

They entered the building, Parks hiding behind Bruno as best he could, but attracting too much attention anyway. And when Balgo have almost breathed, and the door of the Cabinet Bernita was already a few feet, but.

“ _DIRECTOR BANGNYFE_!” A high-pitched girl's voice shouted from the front. Not the voice itself, but its owner, of course.

Balgo saw Bruno sigh heavily and clearly give up. Bangnyfe was hoping to avoid who-have-it-neither-was obviously.

“Carol—“ was all he whispered, but it all made sense.

“Director Bangnyfe, Hello!” Carol ran up to them. “Hello to you too, dragon boy!” she winked, smiling sunnily.

“Hey, em,” Parks said, but hesitated. 

Carol returned the handshake and introduced herself, “My name is Carol Discomfit,” she said, turning back to Bruno and making a ‘bow’ of her lips. “Dire~ector Bangnyfe, how are you today??”

Well, Balgo thought, a little shocked, her name definitely suited her.

***

¹ — fuck off, spotty) (ger)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> In the next chapter: Balgo's return to his apartment, and Reveal (Gasp_)  
> In the next chapter: a terrible discovery that will make you shudder  
> I will develop The Märchen part of the story, because well, it would be wrong to force you to wait until the old man Kubo will catch up.

**Author's Note:**

> Fic’s playlist is [here](https://open.spotify.com/playlist/1rsWQnZJFPqITLhZiKYCpa?si=y8O9rE86T0ql8296CQdpSg)  
> Fic’s dashboard is [here](https://www.pinterest.pt/krumonlame/my-fics-dashboards/heartmelting-dragon/)


End file.
